Eight woman are now dead. Murdered. In two months. All in Ekurhuleni.
Late last night, at a media briefing, police offered a R400,000 reward for information as a high-level team announced that the original five Kempton Park murders they were investigating had risen to eight across Ekurhuleni since July.
Police have said there is not evidence as yet to say there is a serial killer, but that there are a lot of similarities in the murders. Only two of the eight women have been identified.
Acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia said police will “massively expand” visibility through Operation Shanela in Kempton Park and the surrounding areas.
“The police will lock down this area in the coming weeks.The community will see the presence of the South African Police Service, and we will mobilise all necessary law enforcement capabilities, working with our communities..."
“The team is in place, and I can give you the assurance, based on past experience, that when it comes to such situations, the South African Police Service has the experience, the high-level expertise, to investigate cases of this kind."
Meanwhile South Africa mourned those killed, and demanded answers of a nation where GBVF has been classified as a national disaster. There was also growing backlash at advice from police on how women can avoid being murdered.
Social media was flooded with black and purple colours - colours that have come to symbolise the fight for women who are killed and hurt by violence against them.
The killings come against the backdrop of years of concern over the scale of violence against women and children in South Africa including the escalation of femicide. President Cyril Ramaphosa has previously described GBV as a “second pandemic”.
Cachalia also announced last night the R400,000 reward in the Ekurhuleni murders following a high-level meeting with senior police and government officials in Parktown.
“I want to say the police are not depending on offering rewards. And I'm sure that the people out there, our people, want to report to the police without the necessity of a monetary reward.
“That’s not what is needed. What is just needed is your humanity, your self-respect, your dignity, your determination to secure justice for the victims,” Cachalia said.
He added: “we live in a society in which the women of our society, our mothers, our sisters, our daughters, our children are unsafe."
Cachalia added "the deaths of these young women must not be in vain" and Ramaphosa stated earlier that "no stone will be left unturned" to find those responsible for the killings in the Ekurhuleni and Kempton Park areas.
Later Cachalia said "...Let us unite to strive for the justice of eight young women and all women in our society who live in constant danger, with constant fear. That is just not acceptable,” Cachalia said.
Meanwhile, South Africa slept uneasy last night, mourning with the families of those killed.
Acting National Police Commissioner Puleng Dimpane, clarified when and where the eight women's bodies were found:
- Unrevealed woman's body 1 (15 July): A 37-year-old woman found near the R21 highway in Kempton Park. (Her boyfriend was arrested shortly after).
- Unidentfied woman's body 2 (August): Discovered in the Kempton Park area.
- Unidentfied woman's body 3 (August): A separate discovery, also in the Kempton Park area.
- Unidentfied woman's body 4 (7 September): A woman in her late 20s found floating in a river in Clayville, near the Mall of Thembisa. (This case was only added to the central task force probe on Tuesday).
- Unidentfied woman's body 5 (10 September): An unidentified woman found in an advanced state of decomposition in Kempton Park.
- Unidentfied woman's body 6 (12 September): 38-year-old local runner Elizabeth "Tsontso" Moselakgomo, found behind a hotel in Rhodesfield.
- Unidentfied woman's body 7 (14 September): A woman's body found on the side of the road in Olifantsfontein.
- Unidentfied woman's body 8 (15 September): A woman found on Tuesday on the side of the road in KwaThema, Springs. Preliminary reports indicate she was strangled
The number under investigation rose to eight after police reviewed cases recorded at different stations and identified an older case as part of the wider investigation.
The latest body of a woman killed was found in KwaThema, Springs, on Tuesday morning.
Police have yet to establish whether the deaths are connected, with investigators considering the possibility of a single perpetrator, multiple perpetrators or copycat crimes..
The devastation and anger across South African communities is palpable.
Tumi Sole, founder of Run With Sole, was devastated to hear the news of the killing of fellow runner Moselakgomo, who was identified as one of the eight woman killed in the Ekurhuleni murders. He mourned with the family but also pointed to failings on the streets of the country. "Government, municipalities must ensure areas are lit, pavements are there for us to run and not wait for another tragedy.
"Government must also deal with the impact of corruption as those streets lights, infrastructure not completed, take away from streets lights, pavements and safety measures and ultimately costs ours lives, especially women’s lives."
The family of Moselakgomo, 38, identified her body on Monday.
Moselakgomo was “the glue that held us together”, said Lieutenant Colonel Andries Matlaila, speaking as both her uncle and the family spokesperson at a media briefing. He described Moselakgomo as a familiar, home-oriented professional, a dedicated church choir member, and a passionate runner.
Moselakgomo disappeared after leaving her Kempton Park home for an afternoon run on September 9.
Her eight-year-old daughter, whom Matlaila said she shared a close bond with, raised the alarm when her mother failed to return home, according to police.
The Star newspaper's front page today is black with the words "enough" written across. It was the sentiment in the streets of South Africa and on the streets of social media.
A national crisis declared — but what has changed?
The Kempton Park deaths are unfolding against the backdrop of a national crisis that the government formally declared a disaster last year.
On November 20, 2025, South Africa classified gender-based violence and femicide as a national disaster under the Disaster Management Act. The decision followed sustained pressure from civil-society organisations and nationwide protests demanding a more urgent state response.
Nine months later, The National’s analysis of the latest SAPS crime statistics found that 9,201 rapes were reported between April and June 2026 — roughly 100 every day. There were also 11,532 reported sexual offences during the three-month period.
The figures represented slight year-on-year declines, but Amnesty International South Africa warned that the statistics did not capture the full scale of violence against women.
Amnesty executive director Shenilla Mohamed said the suspension of some disaggregated SAPS data relating to women and children made it harder to understand the true scale of the problem.
“The full scale of violence against women remains unclear,” Mohamed said.
THE NATIONAL